August Shaffer

Penname: August Shaffer
Fanfiction.net Profile

August is one of the few writers who are entirely Team Jacob. She loves his character, and as a reader, you can see it in her writing. August is an amazing and lovely person and she cherishes every single one of her readers.

Important Note - She won in the 2012 Jacob Black-n-Pack Awards, Favorite All-Human Story - 2nd Place for - Mr. Uncertain. Congratulations honey! A well deserved win. 

Here we are with the interview. :)

Astrid: Hey August

August:  Hi Astrid

Astrid: Thank you for agreeing to be interviewed by me. I'm so unbelievably happy that you said yes.

August:  Are you kidding? I'm the one who is flattered.

Astrid:  :) So, let's hop right on in there...

How long have you been reading Twilight Fanfiction?

August:  Hmm... Let's see, at least 3 years.

Astrid:  Were you able to catch any of that "Team Edward vs Team Jacob" stuff?

August:  A little bit.

Astrid:  I'm always sorry I missed it. Apparently girls went NUTS.

August:  I mostly just read and left the name calling and mudslinging for the younger fans.

Astrid:  Lol. I understand that. It would have been like watching Jerry Springer.

August:  It was indeed crazy!

Astrid:  How did you find out about fanfiction?

August:  Well, a few years back and I mean, quite a few, I use to enjoy reading Buffy Fanfiction. After I read Breaking Dawn I got to wondering if there was any fanfiction for these books. I went to google search and BAM! I was amazed at how much I found.

Astrid:  I bet. If I remember right, there was talk that some Edward fans didn't like the ending. It wasn't only the Jacob lovers.

August:  Really? I'm surprised by that.

Astrid: Yeah, some of my friends in RL that read the books, they didn't like the idea of the spawn.

August:  Good to know that both teams felt cheated.

Astrid:  Biologically they couldn't see how it happened and they were miffed.

August:  I seriously felt like she tried to put too much in that book. Like she wanted to give everyone a happy ending of sorts, but didn't really think it all out.

Astrid:  Yeah. She failed anyway. Terrible endings for all.

August:  I actually threw the book across the room after I read it.

Astrid:  Lol! Me too! *high five*

August:  *high five*

Astrid:  How long have you been writing fanfiction?

August:  I think around 2 years. Not real sure. Once I joined a site I felt comfortable in, I thought I would give it a shot. I didn't expect my first try to be too good, cause I was new to it all, but I got great support.

Astrid:  That's awesome. What inspired you to write your first fanfiction? Was it something in one of the books? Or was your first fanfiction of another fandom?

August:  Honestly, I wrote a couple of Buffy and did really well with it. Then RL got in the way, and I left it behind. So when I came across the site where anyone could post that joined, I thought why not give it a shot and I looked at all the stories being written at the time and decided to do something different. I didn't want to be compared to some of the really great writers I had read or seen. I didn't want to have a storyline that was too close to someone else's. I never wanted to be accused of stealing someone else's idea. So, I wrote Inheritance, which was all human story set in Vegas, and created my own story line but used SM characters.

Astrid:  That brings me to my next question, do you have a preference? AH/AU or AU?

Whether it be writing or reading.

August:  AH is easier with the creative process. You run less chance of writing something too familiar. I love reading all kinds of stories, but normally I feel more comfortable writing AH.

Astrid:  Because AU has the whole supernatural aspect that you have to take into account, I can see how writing AH would enable a more creative story. Jake wouldn’t be in danger of phasing when he kicked some dudes ass.

August:  Exactly! I envy people who can write it, but I fear anything I write won't be as good in comparison. I have a few I have written but I always freak out that it's not going to be as good as the readers are expecting.

Astrid:  I think your writing is amazing, so no worries there.

August:  Aww. Thanks hon. :)

Astrid:  Did you read all of S.M.'s books? If you had to pick, which one was your favorite? Why?

August:  I read all of her Twilight books, and I would have to say that Eclipse was my favorite. Bella and Jake shared the kiss that showed their future possibilities, and she finally admits her feelings for Jake.

(Plus, the tent scene was funny as hell and inspired many great fanfics.)

But of course, it ended horribly for us when Bella made her final choice. I really had hoped in that book that Bella would finally come to her senses and see what was right in front of her.

Astrid: I don’t remember much of Eclipse. Not going to lie. I think I blocked most of it out. That book was hard to read, at least for me. Because I knew there was another book, and a vamp baby was coming up... I knew her choice.

August:  See I didn't know, so I was blindly optimistic.

Astrid:  My sister ruined it for me... Maybe that’s why it was sour for me to read.

August:  I kept thinking why would she create a wonderful character like Jake if not to prove to Bella or to Edward that Bella deserved to live out her life as a human.

Astrid:  *sad sigh* I know right.

August:  Yep.

Astrid:  On one hand I'm glad that I knew, because if not? And that shithole ending came along? I think I would have found SM and kicked her ass.

August:  Lol! I really felt that she was being pressured, either by her fans or her editor, to keep the Bella/Edward romance going after that book.

Astrid:  This might sound weird coming from me, I'm not known for my love of Corpse boy, but I think she shoulda quit with Twilight. And I know, I know, if she quit with Twilight then we wouldn’t have such back story on Jake; but man! He suffered a fuck ton in those books.

August:  I think in her crazy head she convinced herself that she was doing a good thing by making Nessie, Jake's imprint. So he would always be a part of Bella's life. Ultimately it just didn't make sense and made it seem more selfish this way... I agree with that. I mean, why create such wonderful characters, like Jake and Leah, and not give us the readers a HEA for such knock about people. Jacob was the underdog that much was evident. Edward always brought danger with him, while Jake was always saving her life.

Astrid:  Gah! I hate Corpse boy.

August:  I won't lie, when I read Twilight, I liked Edward's character. I’ve been a big fan of Vampires; but then I met Jake and I was like, ‘Edward who?’

The further the books went with Ed's character; I noticed how she was giving young girls mixed signals when it came to young love. I did like how he fought to keep her human; but beyond that, I wanted to put a stake in his heart.

Astrid:  Lol!

August:  I kept hoping he would do the mature thing, and leave her behind forever, but nooo, he couldn't live without her. Bullshit.

Astrid:  Right, *rolls eyes* Fuckin’ corpse boy.

What did you think about Bella as the Twilight Saga progressed?

August:  At first I was in love with her. I mean she was a normal girl, not a beautiful exotic looking girl who could have any boy she wanted type - I hate those - and she seemed so mature and sensible. Not a cheerleader or homecoming queen type.

Then I started to see how much she wanted to be like the Cullen's because she was jealous of their eternal youth and powers. It irked me that she began to seem a little more and more like a junkie. She wanted that fix so damn bad, and I still think it was the only reason she chose Ed over Jake. She couldn't become a wolf or live forever with him. I mean she was willing to hurt her parents, who throughout the books, she was trying to protect from the bad vampires, when it was really her who did the worst damage.

Astrid:  Yeah, that was a pretty shit thing about her.

August:  Pissed me off. It was saying to the youth it's okay to turn your back on your parents once you meet the right guy.

Astrid:  She was an emotional black hole - take, take, and take. Selfish.

August:  I know right! She wanted Edward and Jake. She acted like it was hard to be without either one of them. When the final choice came, and she knew it would make her enemies with her best friend, Jake, she did it anyway.

Astrid:  She couldn’t be without Edward, but she was getting better without him and his sparkle vampire dazzle juju.

August:  That's selfish and cruel. I do think there was some major dazzle going on with Ed and his whole family. She was always around them. Only Rosalie knew her choice was not only reckless but would eventually be her biggest regret.

Astrid:  Hell, in New Moon, she was still going through withdrawals like a junkie, but Jacob was there for her and helped her. Right until Alice showed up. One whiff of that vampire dazzle crack, Boom! She was a goner.

August:  Exactly! And when we hear her talking to Alice in email, she even said she was starting to heal but then SM wrote Jake being busy and away from her, giving her time to be lonely enough to go and do something stupid.

Astrid:  Yep. I agree.

What did you think about the Cullen Coven members as the saga progressed?

August:  Hmm... Well, at first I really liked Alice. I thought she was kooky, but a fun character. Rosalie came off as the major bitch, but when we learned of her history and why she was so dead set against Bella, I fell in love with her. Emmett was not only hot, but hilarious. While Jasper often looked in pain, you had to feel sorry for the guy. I like Esme. She was so maternal and sweet. I really hated that Carlisle was so quick to agree to Bella's choice just to keep Edward alive. I thought that was a bit selfish on his part. I think Alice should have told Bella of a future she could have had with Jake. I mean if Bella could see it in a kiss how come Alice couldn't?

Astrid:  I think maybe it was because she didn't want to or couldn't see it. A future disappearing usually meant death for that thing called Alice. (Hate her). Or the whole, she couldn’t see it because it dealt with a pack member thing.

August:  Then how did she see the jump to begin with? It was in La Push with the wolves all around her?

Astrid:  Lmao! I've asked myself that time and time again. Especially when in Eclipse, doesn't he tell her that they can't see her once she crosses into the Res?

August:  Another major boo boo.

Astrid:  Lots of those in the books, aren’t there? ;)

Do you think there was any part in any of the books where Bella should have just walked away from Edward? Which one stands out?

August:  Geez there were several but my breaking point would have been when she learned about him taking her out of town to see her mom and withholding about Victoria. He was telling her who she could see or not and then not being truthful with her. Sometimes he treated her like a parent instead of a boyfriend.

Astrid:  Very controlling. Abusive behavior. Manipulated and emotionally abused, in my opinion.

August:  Definitely.

Astrid:  Is that what SM thinks a romantic relationship is like?

August:  And the stalking; got to love the way he would slip into her room just to watch her sleep. Like I said some major mixed signals for impressionable young girls to read. As an adult, I knew I wouldn't put up with that crap.

Astrid:  People thought that was romance! Dude, there's some older women who find Edward as the ultimate "man boy corpse" - whatever the hell he is. I don’t see how.

August:  Lol. He wasn't a bad boy in the sexy sense. Hell, he was a virgin for god's sake. The boy didn't cuss; he just got to look young forever and act all righteous and play the poor pity me act.

Astrid:  Issues there too. The kid was a virgin and SM made him a sex god in BD. Uh, no.

August:  Lol! Right.

Astrid:  I’ve said this before, and it’s a theory that I’m sticking to. He would have been a two pump chump for eternity.

August:  Every time they kissed it looked so painful. How could Bella handle the coldness of him when she tells you from the start of the book she didn't like cold things? Wouldn't his penis have been like screwing a Popsicle?

Astrid:  Lol!

August:  I'm just wondering.

Astrid:  I know right. I thought about that too. Did the warm water from the ocean thaw him out during their honeymoon "swim"?

August:  And how does he create semen? Wouldn't it be like poison to her vagina? Have sex with a vamp, Boom! you're a vamp!And it not be poison to her vagina?

Astrid:  Lmao! Yeah, that’s what I thought. Wouldn’t it be venom, not semen? Actually someone posted a tumblr about his sperm. Gross. Gross. Ew.

August:  The new way to become one of the living dead. No longer need the bite, just the semen. 

Astrid:  Lol! A new meaning to "fuck her to death".

August:  Lol! Love that. - What happens if she gave him a blow job? I would hope she doesn't swallow. Another way to turn her. 

Astrid:  I read a fic once where vamp semen tasted like almonds. I was like what the hell! 
*dies laughing*

August:  OMG! Almonds? Copper maybe but almonds?

Astrid:  Yeah.

August:  That's creative, I suppose, but an odd flavor.

Astrid:  They wrote, 'his come tasted like sweet almonds...'

August:  Lol!

Astrid:  Lol!

August:  I like to know what semen they've tasted. I wouldn't describe the flavor as almonds, that's for damn sure. Because I can eat almonds by the handful. Just saying.

Astrid:  You just cracked me up...
Oh man... I lost my spot in the interview... Lol!

August:  Lol! Sorry didn't mean to get too personal there.

Astrid:  No worries. I've tasted come before, and it's never tasted like almonds. If it did, I'd be more of a swallower myself. 

August:  Right!

Astrid:  If Jacob wasn’t an option for Bella, who do you think (out of all the pack members and none of them are imprinted) would have been a good match for her? Why did you pick him/her?

August:  Embry! Embry was a soft sort of guy but also very funny and loyal. Now, if Seth had been older I would pick him. He is so much like Jake.

Astrid:  Yeah. Good picks by the way. :)

August:  I know a lot of readers love the idea of Paul/Bella, but I honestly think they are too much of opposites in reality. However, I understand why so many still like to indulge in the fantasy.

Astrid:  I think Paul's appeal is how he is pretty much a blank slate, and what we do know about him is his anger, which is equated with a bad boy image. 
Do you remember the first fanfic you read? What did you like the most about it?

August:  I want to say that was Never too Late by Spiritmcinnamon? I liked how she showed us a few years later into their lives and gave us new characters to enjoy. It was still basically SM's characters, but she wrote the adult version of what could have been. Plus, it was my first taste of what it would be like if Jake had imprinted on someone after all, but we learned later that imprint really didn't happen.

Astrid:  I know which one you're talking about. I haven’t read it.

August:  It's my all time favorite story!

Astrid:  It’s complete now.

August:  So excited to hear that. So many good stories start off at a good pace and then something happens in the Author's RL and prevents them from finishing or posting for months.

Astrid:  I know. I understand RL gets hard and sometimes you just can't write

August:  Oh I know, cause I still have several WIP's myself.

Astrid:  There are times when I think an A.N. helps readers know that the fic isn't abandoned.

August:  I agree.

Astrid:  like a story that I was in love with, and it hasn't been updated in over a year. No A.N. No nothing. 

August:  Not one of mine is it? Lol!

Astrid:  Lol. No, not you. But she replies to PM's. Well, she replied months later.

August:  Good. I was thinking, I'm a few months behind not a whole year yet... It's like buying a book and you start reading it and suddenly on page 165 and on you find nothing but blank pages.

Astrid:  Yeah. Sometimes though, it can be reviewers. Rude, mean people. Or as I fondly refer to them, 'canon loving twats'.

August:  I've been hurt by a few, especially when I first starting writing. I even yank my stories for awhile until a couple of friends offered to help beta for me and insisted that you can't win them all. Then I thought to myself, hey they are getting a free read, not paying me a damn dime, don't like it, then don't open it back up.

Astrid:  I was hurt, by my first flamer, not because she didn't like the story. I don’t expect everyone to like what I write; it’s unrealistic to expect that everything you write is gold. But she personally attacked me as a person, not as a writer. I agree. Don’t like, don't fucking read.

August:  No, I learned to work on grammar issues, no one ever told me they hated my stories themselves or me for that matter but I just got tired when they would find one or two mistakes. I've read stories where Author's are glorified for their writing and found errors in the writing but I wasn't quick to tell them about that. Even published books have mistakes in them, and people are paid to look for those mistakes.

Astrid:  *sighs* Yeah. 
August:  Fanfiction for me is a world where I get to lose myself from the real crazy world I live in.

Astrid:  I agree. I write to let loose emotions and share a story or idea I had. Not to get ripped apart because someone didn't like Bella ending up with a character other than Edward. 
August:  I know what you mean.

Astrid:  *sighs* Okay, back to the questions... 

Out of the fanfics that you have written, which one is your favorite? Why?

August:  That's a hard question... Let me think... Inheritance. It has tons of grammar mistakes in it, but it was my first story and I got to create so many subplots. It reminded me of the kind of romances I read when I was younger. However, It Takes Two was fun trying to figure out who exactly got Bella and Emily pregnant.

Astrid:  I read that one, and yeah, nearly ripped my hair out. Lol.

August:  Were one or both women having Jake's baby? That was the burning question. It was also fun to write Sam/Emily as a AH couple.

Astrid:  Never was an S/E fan, but that one was good. You made me like them together. No easy feat I tell you. Lol.

August:  Thanks. I know, normally I like a little Sam/Leah action myself.

Astrid:  I prefer S/L together.  :)     
Do you find it hard to write lemons? What helps you when you write a sex scene?

August:  Are you kidding me? Hard? More like excruciating.

Astrid:  Really?

August:  I'm terrified that I added too many arms or that I'm making it sound more like I'm giving directions rather than the natural act of sex. I hate trying to come up with new words that aren't too silly for "penis" or "vagina" that won't sound offensive either.

Astrid:  Yeah that’s a hard one... Hard... Lol! Just giggled. Okay, seriously though, it is. 

August:  I envy erotic writers who can just use the words that as a reader you know they mean. My beta smacks my hand and reminds me I need to use better words than "cock".

Astrid:  Lol. Like 'peen'. If I ever saw the word peen in a fic, I'd laugh my ass off. 

August:  I can't help but laugh when I use the other words. One time we looked up words similar to "cock" and lord the list of slang terms is crazy funny and long as hell.

Astrid:  Lol. I don’t like using too many out there words. It is hard to find another word for penis. Even penis bothers me some times. It's like she's giving him a physical and asking him to cough. 

August:  Lol. One-eyed Willy.

Astrid:  Ha! That's a weird one. What about schlong... 'ride my schlong'... 'suck my pole'...

August:  Lmao! - I know lemons play a part in a romance story, but if all I read in a story is lemon scenes you have lost me as a reader. I would rather watch porn then read it.

Astrid:  I agree. Smut has its place, even in a fic.

August:  And I don't understand when two people just suddenly jump into bed without any rhyme or reason. I try to write what I can see and believe in.

Astrid:  I’ll be honest in a rated M fic, if there’s no sex I ask myself, Why was it rated M? And if the story teases and the writer alludes to sex "soon", and then doesn't deliver, I could see why someone would give up.

August:  I can see that.

Astrid:  It’s a cocktease.

August:  I've read novels before that the characters don't have sex till halfway or toward the end of the book. I agree with that too. It all depends on the story line.

Astrid:  I do love the occasional smutty OS.

August:  Oh, I agree! I love the smutty stuff from time to time. There are some readers who literally write it where I'm panting and holding onto the edge of my desk.

Astrid:  Lol. I know right. Or squirming in your chair. Wishing you had Jacob next to you. 

August:  Changing panties. Now that's when you know it's hot!

Astrid:  Lol!

In the movies, did you agree with the actors that were cast as the wolf pack? Who would you have cast differently?

August:  I agreed with the casting. I mean, a lot of people have complained that Quil isn't cute enough but come on the boy makes up for it with humor. And they can't all be drop dead gorgeous or they would be too much like the vamps. They were born to be normal boys until the Cullen’s moved into town.

Astrid:  I didn't think of it like that. Poor Tyson. He’s the black sheep of the cast. Lol. That’s mean, I know. Bad Astrid!

August:  Plus look at Bella, why would she be able to attract two of the hottest guys in the area?

What was it about her? Sure she could cook and do math but she was clumsy and didn't really dress up girly.

Astrid:  And she was a twat. Don’t forget that.

August:  She wasn't even flirty. Lol. She mumbled when she spoke.  

Astrid:  Lmfao! She mumbled. I remember. That's just tickled me. 

August:  Seriously! The girl barely spoke more than one or two words at a time and then she looked scared to death that she actually opened her mouth to speak. Like I said, she acted normal for the most part and very insecure but who wouldn't when you are dating a guy who looks hotter than you and is always going too. I hated how Alice was insisting on changing her clothes all the time like a Barbie doll

Astrid:  Don't get me started on the cunt Alice. Lol.

Favorite wolf? Why?

August:  Duh, Jacob! I love how he was so loyal to her even after she broke his heart over and over again. He sacrificed so much to prove his love for her. He was caring, compassionate, funny, and not to mention hot as sin.

Astrid:  *dreamy sigh* that he is. Stupid Bella.

August:  He was like the boy next door with potential to have a mix of bad boy in him. Stupid Bella!

Astrid:  What was your reaction when you read Jacob imprint on Renesmee during his POV in Breaking Dawn (book)?

August:  I was greatly disappointed. I knew that she did it to keep Jake close to Bella. I felt like she was dead set on giving Bella everything she ever wanted and it wasn't fair to Jake to be forced to not only watch Bella be a vamp in love with her hubby, but to put him in the mix of his enemy. Then to be the only pack member to imprint on a damn half breed? How could he ever look at Nessie and not see Bella or worse Edward in the girls face? I felt like for all the good deeds he did, he was punished for it.

Astrid:  He suffered so much.

August:  And would always suffer to a degree.

Astrid:  Yep. In canon, he lost the love of his life and was tied to a hybrid spawn. I can't deal with the spawn. I get irate. It's really hard for me to read BD or Post BD fics. I’ve been pleasantly surprised a few times with BD fics, but most of the time? I want to claw my eyes out.

August:  I can write them and read them as long as I know ultimately B/J will be together. If it's strictly an N/J story it will be hard to win me over. I really like the stories that make Bella suffer.

Astrid:  Lol. I think it’s the part in us that likes the idea of revenge/retribution.

August:  I mean, you know it would have to irk her to see Nessie and Jake kissing and hearing them having sex all the time.
Astrid:  No. No. No sex. Ew. Gah! No!

August:  It would be justice. Lol.

Astrid:  *covers ears and runs away*

August:  Sorry. Lol. I still believe that J/B would have been just as much an epic couple as they made B/E.

Astrid:  Even implied J/Spawn sex... UGH! *gag*
Did you have an issue with any of the imprinted pairs? (Besides Jake) did they all make sense to you?

August:  Let's face it, the Quil/Claire thing was a bit out there. My first response was "WTH?" It had to be embarrassing for poor Quil that he would find his in like a toddler. Once again SM kicked some characters in the balls over and over again.

Astrid:  Are you reading any fanfic now?

August:  I'm reading Soul Mates through Time, Love Is Blind and Butterflies and Hurricanes and The Climb, and Timing Is Everything are the main ones I've kept up with this past week.

I'm horrible about reading and like to wait until the writer has posted several chpts before I start reading. I’m not patient with waiting a week at a time for an update. LOL

Astrid:  That’s cool.

Favorite fanfic writers?

August:  LuvinJ, Jessipooks, You, Shadowlynx, Willow, Dragonfly, Diving Belle, Jusobele, and Niamh, are the ones off my head. If I see their names attached to anything I definitely take the time to check it out. I like their style of writing and they always come up with such wonderful original ideas.

Astrid:  I’m waiting on an update from Pic Buddy (Shadow). 

Favorite FF stories? Completed or not, but stories that are your absolute favs.

August:  Let’s see... Rewriting History, Prisoner of Love, Never Too Late, Stay with Me, One Night in a Tent, Leap Day Magic, Ties That Bind Us, Every Five Years of Marriage and Divine Intervention. Those are in my top ten of favs. 

Astrid:  Good list.

What do you find easier, one shots or multi chapters?

August:  Multi, definitely. I suck at OS. I envy people who can put so much story in one chpt.

Astrid:  OS's can be a challenge. Emotions are a biggie. Can they be conveyed in so many words in an OS? So I understand what you mean.

August:  Exactly. I always tend to want to tell so much in a story that my OS attempts turn into a novel. I need to learn to simplify more.

Astrid:  I think multi's are good with that you can take your time, the characters can grow.

August:  If stories could be videos I know mine would be much better than they are. LOL

Astrid:  Lol. Mine would be mostly porn.

August:  Lol!

Astrid:  Do you have a vampire(s) that you like from the Twilight books?

August:  Not really. Emmett is pretty and Jasper is interesting with his background but none of them are really my favorite anything.

Astrid:  What other fandoms do you like reading?

August:  At the moment other than Twilight, it would be Vampire Diaries. You know I'm a big Damon fan. I also like watching Teen Wolf, haven't went in search of any fanfics on it.

Astrid:  *swoon* Yes! DAMON!
*fans self* It got hot in here. 
Are you entirely Team Jacob when reading fanfics?

August:  No. I read some Embry ones and read one with Seth. And a few with Nessie in them, but only if I know the outcome is J/B.

Astrid:  How did you come up with your penname?

August:  LOL, well, my last name is Shaffer and I was born in August and I always thought it would be cool to have a different author pen name if I ever got up off my lazy ass to write. I always thought August was different and it did represent the month I was born. I even thought about naming one of my girls "August" but neither was born in that month.

Astrid:  That's interesting. :)

Favorite published book? Author?

August:  Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzergerald. I fell in love with that book and the era.

Astrid:   Good book.

Favorite types of music? Bands? Or singers?

August:  Katy Perry, Sia, Natalie Walker, Taylor Swift, Garth Brooks, Breaking Benjamin, etc. a variety. 

Astrid:  B.B.! Love them!

Favorite movies?

August:  Hope Floats (it's like the story of my life) Covenant, Underworld, Steel Magnolias and Sixteen Candles are my top 5 favs

Astrid:  Hope Floats - That movie makes me cry every single time I see it.

August:  I know right! It always gets me.

Astrid:  Does anyone in your RL know about your love of Twilight?

August:  Yes, my family and closest friends do. :)

Astrid:  One more and we're done... my ass hurts. Lol.

August:  Lol! Mine is a bit numb. 

Astrid:  You didn't take many breaks... 
I’m going to have to drop it like it's hot in a minute to wake up my ass up.

August:  Lol! I love that commercial. I have to get up and shake it when it comes on.

Astrid: Is there anything you would like to say in general? Ask? Comments for your readers?

August:  Wow... that one I will need a minute or two to think about...

Astrid:  Take your time.

August:  I would like to know from my readers which stories of mine they like the most and why? I always get people who say they love my stories but I'm always left to wonder why? I write over many different topics and would be interested to know which ones they enjoy the most. I would also like to comment on the readers who leave reviews and let them know how much it means to the writer whose only payment is those reviews. When a particular story of mine gets a high number of reviews, I will concentrate on that story the most. When I write I mainly write what I want to read about, but the readers opinions help me too. Plus keep in mind that writing is a creative outlet that I do for fun; and I hope when people read it they get as much enjoyment out of it as I did writing it. 

Astrid:  I like your response. You want to hear from your readers and I think that's awesome. Thank you so much for staying up with me. I really enjoyed this interview.

August:  No problem. Sorry it took so long. 

Astrid:  Lol. It always does. I get side tracked.

August:  I'm so flattered to even be asked.

Astrid:  Well, I think you are amazing. So, of course I was going to bug you and ask you. 

August:  I don't consider myself a great author, like most of the ones I read, but I do enjoy writing.

Astrid:  And we, your readers, love you for sharing.

August:  Thanks hon.

Thank you all for reading and getting to know the talented, August Shaffer. Big hugs! Until next time.